Finding Love in all the Right Places
by Snaps For Daryl
Summary: This story takes place right after book six. It's Harry's last summer at the Dursleys and he's discovering what life might soon be like without the looming threat of Voldemort.
1. Say The Words I Long to Hear

**Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is the mastermind behind all Harry Potter books. I own nothing!**

**Author's Notes: Hello All! Yes it is I, Snaps For Daryl, returned from the dead. I've been really uninspired for a really long time, until finally, something hit me. I think it's the fact that my boyfriend's gone for the whole summer and I need a way to express all my pent up romance. Please review! I love to hear what my readers think, even if they think my stories stink. Thanks all!**

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"All my life, starting from when I was eleven years old, one thing has remained constant. You, and now I stand before you, a man, nothing more nothing less, asking you to start your life with me as my lawful wedded wife."

For once Hermione was speechless. She watched as the little boy she once knew turned into a man by asking her…her of all people… to marry him. "I…," she began as a single tear rolled down her rosily rouged cheek. She began to wonder if this boy, well man, really knew what he was getting himself into; if even she knew what she was getting herself into. _Am I really going to psychoanalyze this like I do everything else? _She thought to her self. _Not a chance._ "I will…yes Harry James Potter I will be your wife."

"Oh my God!" Harry exclaimed as he jumped up in bed. _She's your best friend Potter_, He thought to himself. _But then again…is it so wrong?_

"Of course it is!" He exclaimed to himself before realizing he was alone.

On went this internal battle until he decided to start cooking breakfast or else he'd have some cranky Dursleys on his hands. Making his way down to the kitchen Harry kept reeling over how beautiful Hermione really was.

How her cinnamon hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall over a mountain, or how her chocolate eyes were soft yet piercing, warm yet dangerous. He couldn't believe he'd forgotten or ever really noticed until now. After he'd finished frying the greasy bacon and other disgustingly unhealthy breakfast foods the Dursleys insisted on having every morning, an owl arrived.

"Oi Pig!" Harry called through the open kitchen window of the bonny bungalow. _At last…_Harry sighed to himself. With the tiny bird perched on his shoulder and the letter in his hand, Harry sprinted up to his "quaint" room. His letter from his red-headed friend and new found savior read:

_Dear Harry,_

_How ya' been mate? Sorry its taken men this long to write. I've been fine. So mum said it's all right if you want to stay at the burrow for the rest of the summer. Seein' as how your birthday is only two days away, and 'cause that whole blood pact thing with your aunt, we'll come pick you up the day of your birthday. _

_Your Friend,_

_Ron_

_P.S. I think I'm going to ask Hermione to my girlfriend. What d'ya think?_

Was Ron of his rocker? Why did Harry care so much? Shouldn't he still be wallowing over his break up with Ginny? Harry couldn't help but feel an unexplainable twinge of jealousy. Maybe his dream wasn't so ridiculous after all.

Right now the most important thing was his freedom. His freedom to practice magic in a somewhat safe environment given the circumstance, and his freedom to finish what he started with Dumbledore. He needed to get back to the wizarding world; his world, not just for his sake, but for the sake of witches and wizards everywhere. With a quick response of "yes", Pig was on his way. _Just two more days…_Harry thought to himself. _Two more days until freedom…_


	2. Do You See What I See?

**Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is the genius behind Harry Potter...**

**Author's Notes: Hello all! Here's chapter two. I'd like to thank fireblastgurl for being the first reviewer. It's your reviews that encourage me to write more, so please tell me what you think. Enjoy! **

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The day finally arrived when Harry would leave the dismal dwelling he had called "home", at least for the summer, for seventeen years. Today was Harry Potter's seventeenth birthday. On this beautiful morning Harry looked out his window, trunk packed, anxiously awaiting the owl that would disclose his time of departure.

_What the bugger is that? _Harry thought to himself as he saw a small speck in the sky closing in fast on his window. "Pig!" Harry exclaimed with glee. He could nearly kiss the bird he was so happy to see it. Sticking to owl treats instead, Harry removed the slip of paper regarding his pick-up time.

1:30 P.M. This became Harry's mantra as the Dursleys began complaining about how ungrateful he was of their hospitality these past agonizingly long seventeen years. Finally, Harry reached his breaking point.

"Are you out of your bloody minds!" Harry shouted as the decorations on the walls began to clatter and fall off the walls. "You've shown me nothing of the sort! In fact, I've been your personal slave since I was eleven years old! My parents were cruelly murdered for Merlin's sake and all you could do was treat me as a wart on the face of humanity. I owe you nothing Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley Dursley. Absolutely nothing." With that the doorbell rang, in came Arthur, Molly, and Ron Weasley, and Harry was out the door, trunk and owls in hand leaving the Dursleys baffled and awestruck.

"That was bloody brilliant mate!" a very amazed Ron stated.

"Oh you heard that?" Harry said sheepishly.

"You bet I did! It's about time you told that git of a family off."

"Ya know what Ron, you're right…for once. They finally deserved the same 'hospitality' they showed me."

"You bet your sweet cauldron cake I'm right!"

"so have you owled Hermione yet?" Harry asked with high hopes.

"Oh yeah mate! She's already at The Burrow."

"Excellent! I mean…yeah, that's good," Harry muffled out trying to hid his utter excitement. He couldn't wait to get to the burrow to see his somewhat surrogate family once again, but most of all, he couldn't wait to see her.

The ride to The Burrow was filled with talks of Quidditch (apparently Ron was convinced Harry would get captain), what next year would hold for them, and to Harry's discomfort, Ron's plan to ask Hermione to be his girlfriend. Harry still didn't understand why he was so uncomfortable with that… Finally, the car stopped where Harry longed to be the most, and not just because Hermione was there. While Arthur and Molly got Harry's belongings out of the trunk, the boys entered the comforting home.

Suddenly Harry was paralyzed. There she was, sitting by the fireplace, book in hand. Harry couldn't understand why he was so shocked. He'd sheen her doing the very same thing in the Gryffindor common room almost each night. _She looked just as beautiful then…_Harry thought. Then he noticed how her delicate hair poured down her shoulder and how her curves fit perfectly into that chair she was curled up in. It was her. No, it was his…his Hermione.

With that sudden thought, Harry knew why he'd been having all these romantic thoughts about her. He knew why the idea of Ron having her made him want to hex Ron into an oblivion. _I love you…_

"What did you just say?" Hermione exclaimed…


	3. Listen, Do You Want To Know A Secret

"What?" A thoroughly embarrassed Harry asked a shocked Hermione.

"You said 'I love you'," Hermione threw back at the very red boy wonder.

"No I didn't."

"Yes…you did!"

"I have no bloody idea what you're talking about! I think you're loosing it Hermy."

"Harry James Potter, don't you ever call me 'Hermy' again! You know I only allow Gwarp to call me that. And another thing, I'm the sanest one here! Ron has to emotional range of teaspoon, so I know he couldn't have said it, so it had to be you! Ha! Beat that Potter!"

"What's going on here?" Ron questioned walking in on the dispute.

"Nothing!" Harry shouted before Hermione could say anything. He knew how crushed Ron would be if he knew the truth (even though he really does have the emotional range of teaspoon). Harry then proceeded to give Hermione Don't-tell-Ron-PLEASE! look.

"Yeah…what Harry said…nothing," Hermione muttered hesitantly not understanding the look from the flushed teen.

"If you guys say so…" Ron replied with doubt in their responses. "So, let's get Harry settled in," Ron exclaimed. Giving Hermione the We'll-talk-later look, Harry followed Ron upstairs to his room he'd be sharing with his red-headed friend.

_I know I'm not crazy_ Hermione thought. _I know I heard him right._ Hermione slowly walked back to her chair and resumed reading Hogwarts: A history for the zillionth time, but she could not concentrate. She sat there reading the same paragraph, her mind focused on only one thing. Harry. _Hermione Jane Granger, Harry Potter is your best friend! He just broke up with Ginny! Do you really want to be 'rebound girl'? But…he does look bloody handsome…those chiseled abs, raven hair, and beautiful emerald eyes that when you look into them make you feel like he's peering into your soul…_

"NO!" she accidentally shouted.

"What!" Ginny shouted in return. It was the first time Hermione really noticed she was in the same room.

"Nothing Gin. Didn't mean to startle you."

"You're not crazy you know…"

"What are you talking about, Ginny?"

"I heard what Harry said."

"I knew it! I knew he said it!"

"Of course he did, Hermione! Why didn't you say it back?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I saw the way you looked at him last year. I saw how, dare I say it, jealous you looked at him when you'd accidentally catch us snogging in the Gryffindor common room. 'Mione do Ron a favor and tell him how you feel before he asks you to be his girlfriend."

"Oh sweet Lord!" And with that Hermione went upstairs to her shared room with the youngest of the Weasley Clan.

"Hermione can I talk --," Ron began to ask nervously.

"Oh not now Ronald!" Hermione cut him off as she slammed the door behind her, leaving herself to swim in her own thoughts.

_Oh God…Ginny did have a point that…I can't be in love with him…How would Ron deal with that? … but he's so handsome…he's my best friend! … but I love him_.

"I love you, Harry James Potter, I…love…you... Oh God, how do I tell Ron?" With that Hermione flopped on her bed and began thinking of a way to let Ron down easy and a way to tell Harry the secret truth until she fell asleep, her thoughts haunting her.


	4. Just My Imagination

**Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is the genius behind Harry Potter. (that goes for chapter three as well... whoops)**

**Author's Notes: Ok so this is Chapter Four. I tried to make it significantly longer. I hope everyone likes it. Thanks to Iswearitwasme for reviewing. Thank you for your kind words. This chapter is dedicated to you. Don't forget to review please. Tell me your thoughts, good or bad. Enjoy! **

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"Hey mate…" Ron said to Harry as he walked into his room.

"Why d'ya look so down Ron?" Harry inquired.

"It's Hermione. I was going to talk to her and she just slammed the door in my face. I tell ya mate, I don't even know why I try sometimes."

"Maybe I should go talk to her…"

"I dunno mate, you can sure try."

With that said, Harry walked to Hermione's door. He was so excited he would finally get the chance to talk to her alone, but at the same time, he felt like he was ready to vomit. After knocking three times, and then another three times, and then another three times, Harry began to get impatient and started walking back toward his room when he heard Hermione open her door.

"Harry, was that you knocking?" Hermione asked, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

"Oh…yeah. Sorry, didn't mean to wake you."

"Oh it's quite all right. I must've dozed off during my reading or something. Come in." Harry entered her room and took a seat on the bed.

"I…" he began nervously. His palms began to sweat and he began to feel lightheaded, but he knew he had to do this.

"I wanted to talk to you about earlier," he stumbled out.

"Oh! Well all right. Do you mind explaining what earlier was all about?" He knew she'd ask that and he was more surprised at the fact that he didn't have his answer put together coherently.

"All right, so… I started thinking about you and dreaming about you…"

"You dreamt about me?"

"And thinking about how beautiful you are with the captivating eyes and cascading hair…"

"You think I'm beautiful?"

"And then I started to realize that what I was feeling was love and then I started to feel all horrible because I knew Ron was going to ask you to be his girlfriend…"

"You love me?"

"And then I sorta blurted out 'I love you' but I thought I was just thinking it…"

"Harry stop! Take a breath! You talk to much." And with that Hermione reached and planted a delicate kiss on his cheek and then whispered ever so softly in his ear, "it's ok because I love you too." The sensation of her warm voice against his ear sent a cold shiver down his spine. It was enough to make him involuntarily shiver as if he was standing on a cliff and a cold breeze clipped his body.

"This has to be one of the greatest days of my life, and you know how rare those are with me," Harry said enveloping his beloved in a warm embrace. Laughing aloud, Hermione returned the hug and said, "There's a lot more where that came from…"

"What the bleeding hell is going on here!" a very distraught Ron said upon seeing the comforting hug the two were sharing and the way the two were moving in for a kiss before he walked in.

"For Merlin's sake Harry, I asked you to go talk to her, not to bloody snog her!"

"Ron, now wait just a minute!"

"You always have to have everything don't you? Girls, fame, fortune…"

"Ron, let us explain!"

"You knew I wanted to ask Hermione to be my girlfriend…You knew!"

"Ron, it was my choice!" Hermione bursted in.

"Ya know what…Sod off…the both of ya." And with that Ron stormed off to his room, presumably locking the door behind him.

"Well I never…" Hermione exclaimed, baffled that Ron exploded like that.

"It's ok Hermione…He just needs some time," Harry said running a hand through her beautiful, cinnamon hair.

_Ooo, that feels nice. A girl could get used to this_. Hermione thought.

"But we need him…we can't find the rest of horcruxes without him," Hermione stated returning to reality.

"I know 'Mione….I know.


	5. Author's Note

Hello all! I'm sorry I haven't updated in quite some time. I've been on vacation and on somewhat of a hiatus. The next chapter will be up before the end of the week. Thanks to all who have read this story. Sorry the chapters have been short. I'm planning to make the fifth chapter significantly longer then the previous four. I would like to especially thank all the reviewers. Your kind words have really made writing this story worth while. Thank you so much and continue to review!

Snaps For Daryl


	6. Here's The Thing, We Started Out Friends

**Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns everything Harry Potter**

**Author's Notes: Hello readers! I'm so sorry it's taken so long to get this chapter up. I got in fight with my boyfriend and since he's a huge part of my love inspiration, I couldn't bear to write about love and whatnot. This chapter isn't my favorite, but it has it's moments. There isn't any thoughts in this chapter, so sorry to all those who like them. I'll try and put some in next chapter. Don't forget to review on your way out! The more reviews I get, the happier I am, and the happier I am more I like to write...I think you get the idea. Enjoy Chapter Six: Here's The Thing We Started Out Friends.**

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"How could he do that to me!" Ron shouted at the empty room, or so he thought. 

"Oh Ronald, you can't truly believe you didn't see it between them," his younger sister replied.

"Cor, Ginny! You really need to stop sneaking up on people like that!"

"That's besides the point Ron. The point is, Harry got to her first so just grow up and live and let live."

"You wouldn't understand. You're just a child"

"Shows how much you know! Take it from someone with personal experience, Ron. Harry and Hermione are destined to be together. You'll get over it in time and then you'll move on to some other girl…"

"Thanks, Gin." With that, Ron gave his sister a comforting hug and decided to talk to Harry like a mature adult. Did he even how to act like a mature adult? Just as Ron opened the door to talk to his raven-haired friend, he received an unwelcome punch in the face.

"Cor blimey! What was that for?" Ron shouted clutching his nose.

"Oh Merlin! Sorry mate. I was just knocking and then the door opened and…"

"It's alright, I guess," Ron cut him off.

"I think we should talk."

"That's the understatement of the century."

"Look Ron, I'm sorry about what you walked in on. It's not like Hermione and I were snogging eachother bloody senseless or anything. We can't help who we love Ron."

"I know mate. It just hurts ya know? I mean I thought she really liked me. Maybe I really do have the emotional range of teaspoon."

"So you're ok with us?"

"Yeah mate."

"Really? Wow. I thought you'd be bloody mad with rage. I mean no offense Ron, but you don't handle situations like this very well."

"Shut up!"

"Sorry."

"All right mate. So let's get back to having the best summer of our lives before we have to go fight The Big Beasty." Ron had resorted to calling Lord Voldemort "The Big Beasty" because he's too much of a pansy to use his real name. With that, the boys walked back to Hermione's room where she sat waiting to hear news of the reconciliation.

"Hermione," Ron said walking in.

"Ronald," Hermione replied with the same coldness as Ron.

"Look Hermione. It would've never worked between us. I'm sorry love."

"What are you—"

"Don't question, darling," Harry whispered in her ear. "Let him have what shred of dignity he's convinced he has after that little display earlier."

Playing along, Hermione replied, "You're right Ronald. You're just too much of a man for me."

Finally, the dynamic _trio _was reunited and could finally start their search for the horcurxes.


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